


stargazing

by bowlingfornerds



Series: Zombieland [7]
Category: z nation
Genre: Canon Universe, before things went bad, but like
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-06
Updated: 2016-10-06
Packaged: 2018-08-19 23:18:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8228158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bowlingfornerds/pseuds/bowlingfornerds
Summary: Anon prompt on tumblr: "So here's my prompt for a Z Nation fic: "When I was a kid, I used to go stargazing with my dad a lot. And still today, it's one of my favourite activities, no zombie in the apocalypse could change that." My favourite character is 10K (❤) but I also really like Doc. Maybe you could include the both of them? That would be so cool. Thank you! :)"TLDR: 10k and Doc go stargazing





	

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally posted on tumblr, and I decided to post my Z Nation fics here simply because I can, and because it seems like there are a few of you out there who are ready and willing to read Z Nation fic.

_In, out. In, out_.

10k focused on his breathing; on the rise and fall of his chest; the way his stomach shifted under his hand and the small puffs of air, twirling, were visible even in the darkness. He stared up at the night sky, glistening stars glittering around him; little pinpricks of white amongst the black. Absently, 10k wondered if they really were pinpricks; if they were holes in the velvet, a direct route to the brightness of heaven that laid beyond the world.

Even in the zombie apocalypse, a heaven seemed awfully far-fetched.

Next to him, in the bed of the truck, their heads resting on their bags, Doc shifted onto his back.

“Makes you feel pretty small, huh, kid?” Doc said quietly, his voice still sounding loud amongst the quiet of the field. Everyone else was asleep, and 10k was supposed to be on watch – but he hadn’t seen a Z for days, and well, a little stargazing couldn’t hurt anyone, right?

“Yeah,” 10k breathed in response. “But also really big.” Doc hummed his agreement; there was something about it; the way that the sky domed above them, stars laid out in all directions and the moon, hiding off in the corner of his vision; made him feel like he was everything, and nothing. He was the ruler of the universe, and just a dot on the face of the planet.

They were quiet for a while, but 10k could tell this wasn’t the kind of quiet where they weren’t supposed to talk. He’d experienced that kind of quiet. He knew the type where he was choosing not to speak and everyone else just went along with it – no, this felt like another type. Like Doc was waiting – waiting for 10k to talk and lose the filter that he tended to wear as a muzzle.

 _In, out_.

Cold air danced before disappearing, and 10k swallowed.

“When I was a kid,” he whispered, seeing Doc twitch a little as he began. “I used to go stargazing with my dad a lot – we lived out in the woods, it wasn’t difficult.” 10k stopped for a moment, but Doc wasn’t speaking, just leaving the space for 10k to fill. “And today, it’s still one of my favourite activities – no zombie in the apocalypse could change that.”

Next to him, Doc smiled, and 10k saw flashing images of his father, lying in the same place Doc did; the same smile on his face, the same position with his arms resting behind his head. Only, his father would point out constellations and teach him about the universe; tell him all he could remember from distant astronomy and yet always end up talking about 10k’s mother; about the woman who had been gone for more years that he could remember. Even before the apocalypse, 10k had forgotten what her face looked like; distorted features swirling in his mind, hair colour vague and shifting, smile just a bright white in the distance.

His father would describe her freckles, through the stars, though. He would draw her dress; a dot-to-dot of distant fire, the moon would be her eyes, her smile, her face, the size of her heart, beating in the distance.

In the present, Doc didn’t do that. Doc just smiled and nodded, more to himself than to 10k.

“We should stargaze more often,” he whispered. “I used to love doing it, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are loved and appreciated!


End file.
